How to become a black belt in taekwondo

How I did it: The first time, it took 3 years and I got to high red belt, but had to stop because of back pain issues. Because I’d moved in the meantime, I started training at a different gym.

The second time was harder, because I had been exposed to 99% of the material. The curriculum was strikingly similar to the previous gym, but there were subtle nuances that continue to trip me up.

The time from high red belt to black belt was interesting. I never felt really ready, yet the need to wait wore me down. My back began to bother me again, and I wondered if I would need to stop.

Then, I decided that I would walk onto the floor. That if I did that, I would have made some progress since last time. And that was the ice-breaker. From then on, I sailed through the test and did very well.